“Tony [Gilham] and I have been in communication throughout the last few seasons and have helped each other out on numerous occasions,” Welch said. “The time felt right to jump in the seat to see what the new RML cars feel like and to hopefully add some valuable feedback to the team.

“We have always remained interested in the BTCC and will never rule out a return so jumped at the chance to get back involved for the day. What the future holds is unknown but let’s see how the test goes and build from there.”